Preparing for the Fast

We have only a few days before the Daniel Fast 206 begins and I want to encourage to begin now preparing your heart and your soul for this turning point in your life.  This is the 16th year for us doing the Daniel Fast and every year God has done great miracles not only IN us but also AROUND us.  This year will not be an exception.  God will do great things on your behalf.

God gives His grace freely to all who ask of Him.  But He only gives Himself to those who seek Him intensely.  Jesus said this famous phrase: Ask, and it shall be given; seek and you shall find; knock and the door shall be open to you. (Matthew 7:7)  But the verb tense he used speaks of a continual action.  So, the disciples understood the  meaning in this way: If you will ask, and keep on asking, then it shall be given to you.  If you seek, and keep on seeking, then you shall find it.  And if you knock on the door, and keep on knocking, eventually the door shall be open to you.

God loves the entire world.  But He really only gets excited by those who are excited about Him.  God doesn’t play games with His creation.  But He does filter out those who aren’t really serious about His presence and His kingdom.  So, in a sense, God will hide Himself in order to see who will seek Him, and who will continue to keep on seeking Him, until He allows Himself to be found.

Isaiah said, Seek the LORD (the faithful God of covenant) while he may be found, call upon him while he is near. (55:6) Now this doesn’t mean that God is only “findable” for a certain amount of time and after that you can’t find Him.  It means that the finding part is conditional and not guaranteed.  The finding of God depends on the seeking of Him.  If the seeking comes up to the standards of the One being sought, then He allows Himself to be found.

So, my friend, I want to strongly encourage you today to decide with me that during the month of September we are going to seek Him with intensive force.  Determine in our hearts now that we will not allow ourselves to remain indifferent to His purposes or His presence so that He will not allow Himself to remain indifferent to our hunger.